Five for Fraturday

Happy Saturday!

‘

Last Saturday, I went to a TpT Meet Up. And I got to hold the other side of the TpT Meet Up sign even though I tried really hard to find a place to stand IN THE BACK and I was told no, you’re down in front, hold this string and smile, you’re not fooling anyone and so I did what I was told, but can I just say THAT WHEN YOU’RE LOOKING UP, IT HONESTLY DOESN’T MATTER WHERE YOU STAND? Can I please FOR ONCE IN MY LIFE not be in the front? Can I please hide behind someone?

UGHHHH.

Not to make this about me, but I really needed to get my hair done. Color, a major cut, style, the whole shebang. LET ME HIDE, FOR THE LOVE OF PETE AND HIS UNCLE, LET ME HIDE!

PS I got my hair done on Thursday. I’m blonder, it’s shorter, there are more layers, and I really hope it’s lighter, and swings all happy-like, and shines, and does all the things that good hair does on models and commercials and actresses, etc. I wouldn’t know because it’s been in a ponytail ever since.

ANYWHO.

I went to the meet-up with Traci of Engaging Teaching (she is on the very far left and is actually CUT OUT OF THE PICTURE, which one might think isn’t good at all, but I, for one, wouldn’t have minded, and we had a great time catching up!

We had lots and lots of tea (I must have used the bathroom at least five times in two hours), yummy food, and lots of conversation!

I have to confess something to you all, though.

I quite like tea. In fact, I grew up on tea. We had iced tea with dinner every single night. Not milk. TEA. And when I was sick, the first question my mom asked me was Do you want some hot tea? I mean. I like tea. If I’m at my mom’s house, and she offers me tea, I almost always say yes. TEA IS GOOD.

But tea sandwiches?

Little triangles of cucumbers with cream cheese and that’s all?

Um, no.

Where’s the rest of it?

Where’s the rest of the whole?? All I’ve got is this little fraction of a sandwich and I’m hungry, goshdarnit. Where is the rest of this sandwich?

You think I’m kidding? I’m being serious.

There were also scones (I think that’s what they were) with some sort of preserves or jelly or jam and whipped cream (and try holding yourself back from the whipped cream when you’re hungry, I dare you) and lots of little (I’m talking LITTLE) desserts.

It was all yummy. DELICIOUS. I just needed the entire platter of everything for myself.

And I needed to be in a room by myself so I could devour it all however the heck I liked, instead of trying to act like a little lady with her pinky in the air.

That’s all I’m saying.

I put my name in a drawing to win some Sit Spots AND I WON! I never win anything so WOO HOO!! I am thinking of having a giveaway so STAY TUNED! You can read about my love for Sit Spots {HERE}. I am in love with Sit Spots.

You want to know who knows how to do food?

Our PTA!

We had Teacher Appreciation this week and HOLY YUMMINESS.

Monday was a Popcorn Bar. Do you know how much I love popcorn? I LOVE POPCORN! It is one of my favorite snacks ever. I like the Smart Food Popcorn, movie theater popcorn (duh!), microwave popcorn, Skinny Pop, Pop Secret, Orville Redenbacher, kettle corn, and on and on it goes. My most favorite popcorn (besides movie theater popcorn) is Steve’s popcorn which he makes for me on the stove and then I add a sprinkling of parmesan cheese. And every time I say I need to learn how to make this popcorn on the stove (I know, I know, I’m virtually a CHILD), Steve says he’s happy to make it for me and he’d rather get burned from the wayward kernels than me.

And then we all said awwww.

Popcorn – Monday.

Tuesday morning, our PTA provided breakfast. I was hoping against hope that we would have bagels with cream cheese, and sure enough, we did. I also tried this French Toast something or other, I don’t know, it had eggs in it so I was nervous, but OH MY GOODNESS, it was TO DIE FOR.

And then . . . on Thursday . . . THE TACO GUY CAME.

He is our favorite.

He is the best.

We all want to marry him.

Here’s the deal. A long time ago, I didn’t really like Mexican food. Except for the chips and salsa (and the margaritas). But now I LOVE LOVE LOVE Mexican food and I even crave it. Case in point: Steve made tacos last weekend and I ate the left overs for dinner on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday night, and then I had tacos from the Taco Guy on Thursday for lunch. AND I WAS HAPPY EACH AND EVERY TIME.

Here’s how I’m balancing my life in case you’re wondering that I am eating too much or care about food too much or write about food too much.

I am waking up at 4:45am and WALKING AND WALKING AND WALKING. I’m averaging about 8 miles a day (and that’s DOWN from January through March) so there you go. I am also only drinking coffee, tons of water, and the occasional tea at a tea party.

BALANCE YOUR LIFE. WALK AND EAT A TACO. OR TWO.

One day this week, our kids brought us healthy snacks. Such as FRUIT. I love fruit. I really do. Fruit is tasty.

I got oranges and Cuties and apples and granola. And it was all so so so sweet.

I appreciated the effort of trying to make me healthy.

THEY MUST REALLY CARE ABOUT ME (or be worried about me) is what I thought.

🙂

Have you seen the Binder Clip trick before??!! Because I had seen it MANY MANY times before, and I always thought HOW COOL IS THAT, and then I promptly forgot about it.

And then, FINALLY, thank goodness, IT HIT ME.

I needed to use the Binder Clip trick for my Table Captain signs! YES!! I had been using super cute round Table Captain signs, with magnets, on the sides of my kids’ desks, but lo and behold, they would DISAPPEAR. They always showed back up, but it was after a ton of drama, and after I had lost my mind.

So.

Even though it’s April, I made new signs, and I am trying the Binder Clip trick out and SO FAR (fingers crossed), it is WORKING. My kids have a newfound appreciation for being Table Captain and feel a lot of ownership over our new signs. I mean, it’s only been a few days, but we have not lost one sign.

PS the binder clip in the picture is from Target about a million years ago, in case you were wondering . . . some people wondered over on my Instagram, so I’m being forthcoming.

WOOT! I finally finished Just Add Watercolor CVCe edition! My kids love this during our center time. If I had more watercolor sets, I would definitely use it as a whole class activity because it is a super duper quiet activity and I am all about that! Well, not really, because I am known for shouting out BOO! if my class seems too quiet and I’m nervous they are not having fun or being engaged or smiling or something.

But I do like a quiet activity every now and again AND THIS IS ONE OF THOSE TYPES OF ACTIVITIES.

We have “Art” (it used to be a gigantic situation and has been whittled down to just paper and watercolors because SIMPLE yet POPULAR) as a choice during Fun Friday, but since not all kids get to go there (only four), I love having this activity during centers. This way, everyone gets to paint. If they finish the Phonics activity, then they can paint FREE CHOICE WHATEVER.

🙂

This pack has several different options to differentiate for your kiddos. 🙂

PEOPLE!!!

I did NOT cut these letters with scissors.

Nope.

I *FINALLY* used my Silhouette Cameo for the SECOND TIME in five years!

WOOT!

I know, I know, what is wrong with me, who do I think I am to let such a beautiful, smart machine just sit in my office collecting dust?

Well. I’ll tell you who I am.

I am CLUELESS.

And Steve bought this for me kind of as a surprise, and I was kind of like I don’t get it, I don’t have time to get it, I don’t have any use for this, but outwardly I was thanking him profusely because how sweet and thoughtful and maybe he needed me to make him something???

And then one of my teammates used her Cricut to make big giant letters for her walls right before Open House in March, and I thought wait just a gosh darn minute, I can do that, too! Even though she said she could do it for me. But I was like no, I will do this myself. So I lugged it to school, forgot a cord, drove back home, got the cord, and then my teammate gave me a little tutorial.

But my machine kept making the card stock go all wonky, and it kept slipping around, and we couldn’t figure it out.

Then my other teammate went out and bought a Cricut (we are crazy on my team, it runs in the water or something, shoulder shrug) and she started making all of these amazing, personalized T-shirts, I’m talking she needs to open her own Etsy store type of shirts!

So last weekend, I said to myself, Self, you can figure this out, you can do this, let’s do this already!

And once again, my card stock went all wonky and kept slipping around. Talk about FRUSTRATING. I googled and googled and came up with nothing.

I finally did what I should have done in the first place. I took a video of what was happening and texted it to Lauren because she is an expert. And she replied your mat isn’t sticky enough.

Oh. Okay. Well, I had a brand new mat so I took it out of the wrapping and BAM.

AGAIN!

WONKY, SLIPPERY CARD STOCK.

AND THEN.

AND THEN!

IT HIT ME THE WAY MOST THINGS HIT ME WEEKS AND MONTHS AND YEARS LATER.

I’m telling you, I AM A SLOW PICKER UPPER OF MOST THINGS.

Do you know what I was doing? Do you?

I’ll tell you.

I WASN’T TAKING THE PROTECTIVE COVERING OFF OF THE MATS.

Once you take the protective covering off of the mat, it is sticky.

I DIED LAUGHING. I LAUGHED SO HARD. I COULDN’T EVEN STAND MYSELF.

I FELL ON THE FLOOR LAUGHING.

I AM SUCH A KNUCKLEHEAD! A NINCOMPOOP. A FOOL!

A FOOL, I SAID.

Well.

That’s all it took.

Just take off the protective covering that is there for when the mat is put away so that it doesn’t stick to everything else in your drawer or cupboard. I mean DUH.

Now I am on a MISSION!

I’m going to be hanging these letters up around my room and I cannot wait!!!

And I won’t have to cut a darn thing!

Maybe I’ll even make a t-shirt next.

Something along the lines of . . . Your Teacher is a Nincompoop but She Loves You.

Hey, I am out today for my daughter’s appointment and have been binge reading your blog! I keep trying to download your table signs but it goes to a blank screen. I have 4 numbers in a pod with each having a job and I think I will do this instead and then maybe they will actually remember their job!